Masterchef (2010–…): Season 11, Episode 1 - Emeril Lagasse - Auditions Round 1 - full transcript

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It's day one of an all-new
season of "masterchef."

buckle up because
we are kicking it

in to a high gear.

This is the season of legends.

We're doing something
we've never done before

and opening the doors
of the masterchef kitchen

to some of the biggest
names in the culinary world.

The undeniable queen paula deen.

The legendary emeril lagasse.

Curtis stone. Morimoto!

- You ready? - Thank you, chef.



Every single week,
joe, aarón, and I

will be joined by the
culinary crème de la crme.

We wanna cook this
steak in its own fat.

What is so important is
the balance in this dish.

Baste, baste,
baste! Out of the pan, okay?

- Keep up and listen.
- I want you to cook and show me

that you are better than me.

Flippin' do-dah!

You look like
you're doing great!

- You're the best baker in the world!
- Yes!

Our home cooks are
about to get an education...

Pasta water...
Salt like the ocean.

...That no culinary
school could ever match.

- monkfish! - Oh!



There are some great flavors here,
but it's dry.

The dish completely
missed today.

- That doesn't scream legendary status.
- What a waste.

- - look at that. You see that?

- Thousands applied.
- This small-town girl has big dreams.

- But only america's best aspiring cooks...
- Oh, my god!

- ...Earned a trip to l.A. - oh!

- Now, it's time to find out..
- Quick, quick, quick!

- ...Who's ready.
- Come on! Do something!

- This is go-time!
- I'm losing my mind right now, dude.

I'm about to lose my career.

There's a room full
of legends in there.

- Oh! - Medic, please.

Cut straight through my finger.

- And to make their lives...
- ooh! There you go, baby!

- Yeah! - I did it.

...A little more legendary.

I can see that you want
to win this competition.

It was just a
recipe for disaster.

I don't want to go home.

- She's here to help you, okay?
- Yes!

- And cook their way...
- that's a professional touch.

It's definitely restaurant
quality. It looks beautiful.

When a plate is licked clean...

That is truly something special.

...To the championship.

I'm just trying to work hard
and make my dream come true.

You've touched my heart.

Winning masterchef
will allow me to pursue

my dreams and get my
family to a better place.

I'm here to get this
apron. I'm gonna win.

Because if
you want to be a legend,

you need to learn
how to cook like one.

This is "masterchef legends."

honey, I can't wait to cook
in the masterchef kitchen.

This is the start of a new career
for me. This is the start of a dream.

Can you believe daddy made it
all the way to "masterchef," baby?

- Oh, my god! - Wow! This is it!

Whoa!

Wow.

- Look at this!
- Oh, my gosh.

- That's bad-ass.
- We are here!

- Now it's real.
- Oh, my god!

I am in the masterchef kitchen!

The kitchen that
everybody dreams to be in.

Check out all the
legends up there.

I came all the way from connecticut
and I'm super excited to be here.

Like, this has been a
dream of mine for a long time.

I used to watch it on tv and
never thought I'd be here.

- Look it, look it.
- Oh! Oh!

Let's go.

- I think I'm gonna cry!
- Oh, my god!

Welcome to the incredible
masterchef kitchen!

Congratulations.

- How cool is this? - Awesome!

Now,
for you lucky home cooks tonight,

this kitchen is
where it all begins.

Because unlike never before,

every week we are bringing the
culinary world's biggest names right here.

This is "masterchef legends."

you are the best home
cooks in the country.

But only one of
you will earn the title

of america's next masterchef.

Wow.

You'll also walk away with
a quarter of a million dollars

and a complete stunning
kitchen from viking.

- That's right.
- You'll also win

the one and only
masterchef trophy.

Tonight,
your task is to impress us

with your signature
dish and show us

that you deserve one of these.

A legendary masterchef apron.

But,
for the first time in masterchef history,

only 15 of you
will earn an apron.

Now, tonight, we aren't the
only people you need to impress.

You'll also need to convince
one of these legends

that you are worthy
of that incredible apron.

Tonight's special guest
is one of the biggest

culinary legends of them all.

He's mastered the art of
creole and cajun cooking.

He's won three
james beard awards.

Starting things
off with a bang...

Yes!

It's more like a "bam!"

a bam?

It's taken us 11
years to get him here.

All of you, please welcome
the incredible emeril lagasse.

That's my idol.

Emeril lagasse walks out.

I am just in
amazement and shock.

And it's just awesome.
It's awesome.

What a pleasure. Good to see you,
man.

- How are you? - Welcome, chef.

Oh, man!

- Wow. - Yeah!

Honestly,
it's an absolute honor.

Not only have you put creole,

cajun food, comfort food,
on the map,

you own 11 restaurants
across the u.S.,

had a massively
successful tv career,

written 19
best-selling cookbooks,

and you've inspired
millions across the planet.

I am so excited to be here.

I am so excited to
see these people cook.

I'd like to see passion,
delicious food.

It's time to bring it,
and have fun!

- Cook from the heart.
- Listen carefully.

Tonight, you'll have to
convince at least three of us

to get your hands on
that incredible apron.

Now,
here to offer up a little help and guidance

is last season's winner dorian.

And last season's
finalists sarah and nick.

So good to see all three
of you. Welcome back.

Dorian, any words of
advice for tonight's auditions?

Whether you get an apron or not,
this is only a hurdle.

You've already beat
out thousands of people,

so that's something to
definitely be proud of.

All right, listen carefully.
You'll each have 45 minutes

to cook an incredible
signature dish.

I wanna see that passion,
that drive, that energy.

- Understood? - Yes, chef.

Good luck, guys.

Winning masterchef would
absolutely be life-changing.

Quarter of a million dollars,
and the masterchef trophy

is just complete
bragging rights.

Guys, season 11,
the season of legends.

With only 15 aprons,
this is the most competitive season

in masterchef history.

The smallest mistake
can send them home.

All right, guys,
your 45 minutes starts now.

Yee-haw! Let's do this.

There's my bourbon.

I can't even put words to
how it feels to be back here

and watching them go through
what we went through a year ago.

- It's crazy.
- I almost feel a little bit of the nerves from them.

- Right, right.
- This dish will get me that apron.

It has a lot of bold flavors, things you
don't think will go together really well.

I'm making a bourbon-glazed
salmon with a rice pilaf.

Everything goes better
with bourbon if you ask me.

- 11 years in the making. Thank you so much.
- Thank you. Thank you so much.

And you finally
returned our call.

- It won't take me 11 more years.
- Promise.

And we're happy that you're
here for this beginning part of it

'cause this is really where
they need to be inspired.

Just think how nerve-wracking it is for,
you know,

those contestants
coming through.

Not only the three judges,

but now the season of legends,

emeril kicking off
our first week here.

This year with legends,
you need nerves of steel

- in the masterchef kitchen.
- Agreed.

Make sure you put your
best slices on there, okay?

- Yes, chef.
- Ooh, wait a minute!

Five, four, three, two, one.

Hands up, hands up.

Welcome,
young man. What's the dish?

So my dish is a seared ahi tuna

on a bed of a cauliflower
turmeric purée.

I made a bourbon-glazed
salmon with a rice pilaf.

Ah.

- Shall we have a closer look, gents?
- Yeah.

- This is you on a plate, right?
- This is me on a plate.

Just to remind you,
"masterchef legends," 15 aprons,

we're setting the
bar extremely high.

Unfortunately the dish
completely missed today.

Pilaf should be fluffy, fragrant,
exciting, and that's even crunchy.

I've got sort of rice
kernels in my teeth.

- And the salmon's raw.
- I have good news and bad news.

The good news it that
that's the kind of dish

that you would
find in a restaurant.

The bad news is that restaurant
would most probably be in an airport.

Aww. Come on, baby.

Love you.

Joe, there is some good food at airports,
by the way.

Both emeril and I got
restaurants at airports.

- Exactly. - My point in case.

- Doing good? - Yeah.

This is the culmination of
my whole story right here.

Coming from, like,
no food to having all this food around us,

this is the american dream,
you know?

I was born in havana,
cuba, in 1980.

Back in those days,
food in cuba was very scarce.

I tried an apple for the first
time when I came to the states.

And then the more I tried,
the more I became obsessed

about foods and flavors
and textures and colors.

So, I know firsthand what it is not to
have food, and being here at "masterchef,"

I'm definitely trying
to honor all my family

through all the struggles that
we went through coming here.

We came with our clothing
on our back. Nothing else.

So, yeah, being in america and being
on "masterchef" means the world to me,

and I'm gonna make it count.

Let's go.

- Oh, my god.
- Good evening, young man.

- Chefs!
- Tell us about the dish.

I'm doing some
pan-seared lamb chops.

They're gonna go
with a parsnip purée.

- Is this a dish you've done before?
- Yes, sir.

I'm having a little bit of
trouble with the blender.

It needs to go smooth,
but for some reason it's not blending.

Stat it slowly. It stops it
from splattering everywhere.

- There you go. It's starting now.
- There you go.

- Thank you so much.
- Good luck.

Keep it going,
yes? Let's go. Wow.

- Good job. It smells amazing.
- There you go.

Good job, baby. Smells amazing.

A spoon! I need a spoon!

You got it, baby. - Ah!

Ten, nine, eight.

- Still good, still good.
- Seven, six, five, four,

three, two, one.

- Yeah! -

- dude! - The pressure is on.

It's the season of legends, so they
are expecting the highest caliber ever.

This dish will capture my
ambition and what I want to go after.

I'm getting one of those 15 aprons,
and that's a fact.

Tell us your name and
what you have made there, my friend.

My name is alejandro valdivia,
originally from havana, cuba,

and I made a pan-seared lamb
chops with a fresh herb crust,

and heirloom tomato carpaccio
and a cream of parsnips.

Why does this speak to you? Is it
something that's a food memory?

You okay?

Being a little boy in cuba,
there was not much to go around.

Especially protein is,
like, very scarce.

So it's humbling just to
cook for the four of you,

to fulfill my american dream,
which is this right here.

How did you get to america?

In 1994,
the american government drew a visa lottery

- for the first time in 60 years.
- Wow.

And my mother was one
of the winners of that visa.

And we already
won the lottery once.

If I win tonight,
it's gonna be the second time.

- Amazing. Shall we? - Yeah.

Excellent.

It's very stripped down,
so you really need

for all these elements
to really be executed well.

I appreciate the fact that the
plate looks very, very good.

- But see how it's cooked.
- Let's dig in.

All right.

- Perfect medium rare.
- That's great.

Wow.

So, I think it's a little bit sad what
you've done with the tomatoes.

When you have
tomatoes that good,

you need to have the
confidence to serve the seeds.

Because it's where the juice is,
it's where the flavor is.

But you've nailed the lamb.

I like what you did with the mustard
so that the herbs had a little adherence.

I agree with gordon
about the tomatoes.

Sometimes we have a
tendency of trying to do too much

with something that's so simple.

But overall, I liked you dish.

Thank you,
sir. I appreciate that.

That lamb is unreal.

It's really interesting
to see how a cook

really embraces an
ingredient and excels at it,

and I think that it's evident
in the way you cooked it.

Wow. Thank you so much.

You know what the best
taste in this dish really is?

- Your ambition.
- Thank you, sir.

This year you need three yeses
to get your hands on that apron.

- Aarón, apron or not?
- For me, it's an absolute yes.

- It's a definite yes.
- Thank you, chef. That's an honor.

I don't know. Like, with so few aprons,
to give an apron for ambition,

it's a big step for me.

But I have to say,
I think your ambition can go a long way,

- so it's a yes for me.
- Thank you.

I've always said in this
competition, it's not how you start,

it's how you finish. But
you've come in with a bang.

You've got three
yeses for an apron,

- and it's a big yes from me.
- Oh, my god.

- Congratulations. Well done.
- Thank you, sir. Oh, my god.

- Come around, come around.
- Let me put this on you.

I promise you I'm gonna deliver.
I won't let any of you down.

- Put the ambition in the plate.
- God bless you. Thank you.

- That was delicious. Oh, my god.
- Yep, absolutely.

- Yeah! -

- yeah! -

this is totally a
dream come true.

This is proof of the american dream,
you know?

A kid that came to
this country with nothing

and now has got a
masterchef apron.

That's, like, spot-on. I can't
wait to see where he's gonna go.

That's it. Amazing. Amazing,
amazing.

- Hey, cail, how you doing, girl?
- Great.

- You making me my cake?
- No, it's not your cake.

- This one's actually mine.
- Oh.

I'm jennifer,
and this is my daughter cailin,

and we're from castro valley,
california.

I'm here cooking with my mom.
We are both trying to get an apron.

It's something we've
always both dreamed of.

My mom and I have been watching
the show together every season,

and now we're both
on "masterchef."

cooking next to cailin
right now is so special.

And I'm just so excited to be able
to spend this time with her together.

My mom has always been my teacher,
my role model.

She's taught me a lot of
things both in the kitchen

and in real life.

I'm just so proud of, like,
who she's becoming.

And we're here competing together,
so we're both gonna get an apron.

Cail, remember when I... We
used to go to soccer games?

- I do remember that.
- I'm still there. I'm rooting for you, girl!

You go,
girl! You go! You can do it!

Right. How are we doing?

We are doing wonderful today. Oh,
my gosh.

We're? When you say "we're"... Um,
hold on a minute.

- Oh, my lord. You're going up against your daughter?
- Wow.

- Yes, I know! I know!
- What's wrong with you? Seriously?

- Crazy, right?
- What are you cooking?

I'm making you today
a grilled mahi mahi,

blackened forbidden
coconut rice,

and a nice tropical salsa.

- Right.
- So this is the marinade here?

- That is the marinade, yes.
- And what's in that?

Some cilantro, onions, cumin.

Some cayenne,
orange juice. It will be good.

- Right, good luck. Thanks.
- Thank you so much.

Let's go, young lady. Tell us
about the dish. What are you doing?

So I'm doing a molten
lava chocolate cake

- with a raspberry sauce.
- And you buttered the ramekin?

I did. I buttered and sugared them
and I put them in the blast chiller.

- Be careful turning those out.
- I will.

Make sure they're cooked,
'cause if they're not cooked...

- Boom. - Yep, you're done.

- Thank you so much.
- All right, good luck.

I definitely think that
my mom and I doing this together

is something that no one else in the
world really even gets to ever experience.

- You got it, mom!
- Five, four, three,

- two, one. - Whoo!

- I love you. - Love you, too.

I wish the best for my daughter,

but I want an apron
more than I can even say.

- Welcome. - Thank you.

And what dish have you cooked,
please?

A grilled mahi mahi,

black coconut rice
with tropical salsa.

I made a chocolate volcano cake

with a raspberry sauce
with some fresh raspberries.

- Gentlemen? - Oh, gosh.

- Your moment has arrived.
- Right.

Now, let's see how that is.

- How long did you cook that for?
- Four minutes on one side,

and 45 seconds
on the other side.

I like what you did.
I like how it looks.

- That orange liqueur, I love that.
- Yes.

When you marinate something,
you still need to season it.

The fish is slightly overcooked,
but there's no seasoning.

I think I could speak for
all of us when I say that

this is not the level
we're looking for.

- Okay. Thank you. - I'm sorry.

It's not cooked all
the way through.

- It missed its mark.
- This is the season of legends.

There's only 15 aprons
being given out this year.

So, it's a tough one.

What do you think?
A yes or a no?

Even though we
didn't get an apron today,

I'm still gonna keep cooking...

- Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah.
- ...With my mom.

You guys are amazing.

We've been really
cautious with these aprons.

- Yep.
- There's a high bar to set for them to get over

in order to get their
hands on that apron.

This year the quality
has to be super high,

and it has to be a
game-changing dish.

- Pretty intimidating, right?
- Yeah.

Now I'm like, okay, what's next?

Pick your feet up. Thank you,
sweetie.

I'm matt, I'm from cromwell,
connecticut,

and I'm a construction worker.

I work outside year round.
It's back-breaking work.

I work outside in the snow,
the rain, the heat, anything.

So it's exciting to think
that I could make a change

and do something that
I'm passionate about

and something
that I really do love.

Nope, just leave that. Good.

If I win "masterchef," the quarter
million dollars would mean that my kids

are pretty much set for college
or I can start a restaurant.

That's huge for me.

Yeah!

What's going on? What
are you cooking for us?

I am making you
an egg yolk ravioli.

You know something? You are on
hallowed ground with the egg yolk ravioli.

It's really a signature
dish of the show.

We've seen it over the years.
We know what the standard is.

- I'm excited for this.
- Good luck.

I'm definitely feeling nervous.

I'm trying to go big on a dish

I know they know is difficult.

This is probably the
most important dish

I will make in my
whole entire life.

- You got it.
- Three, two, one.

Good job.

I'm pretty happy with the
way the dish came out.

- Go, daddy, go!
- Go, daddy! Yeah, go, daddy!

Honestly, the judge I want to
impress the most today is emeril.

I mean,
who wouldn't want to impress their idol?

First name and describe the dish,
please.

I'm matt,
and I made for you an egg yolk ravioli

with homemade ricotta,
a basil oil,

some roasted cherry tomatoes,
and some crispy fried leeks.

Your eyes lit up
when you saw emeril.

What does that mean
to have this legend here?

Honestly, like,
you were the first chef I started watching,

and you made it so exciting for me
and... and bam, man. Kick it up a notch.

If I get an apron or not, just to meet you
and shake your hand is a huge deal for me.

- Shall we? Nice. - Let's go.

So, when I cut into this,
the yolk should obviously be runny.

- Very good.
- That's great.

- Did you make the ricotta?
- I did.

45 minutes?

Gents,
it's the season of legends.

Toughest season yet,
so it's a tough one.

I'm excited about
your technical flair.

Smart move with the ricotta.
Needs a bit more seasoning.

And the fried leeks looked great,
but they don't taste

anywhere near
what they should do.

I would prefer to see
one-third less on the plate

and the two-thirds done better.

And so, for me,
it's a no, unfortunately.

Joe, what do you think?

Good news and bad news.

The good news is that
the heart of your dish,

the pasta, is perfection.

The bad news is the pesto is
super garlicky and the tomatoes,

although done right,
are really not necessary.

Question is,
is it good enough for an apron?

For me, it's apron-worthy. Yes.

- Thank you, joe.
- Maybe just a couple of dots of that pesto

'cause it is very aggressive.

But execution on the pasta,
spot on.

So, sí, senor. It's a yes.

- Gracias.
- So, this year you need three yeses

to get your hands on that apron.

You've got two.

Emeril,
you are the deciding vote.

Well...

I'm trying to
outweigh the positives

and the negatives overall.

Your pesto tasted raw.

Maybe that might have
taken over a little bit of the dish.

But you nailed the pasta,
so I have to say

it's absolutely...

...My honor to
give you this apron.

- Amazing. - Thank you so much.

I'm impressed with what
you did with 45 minutes.

- Thank you.
- Congratulations.

Thank you so much, and honestly,

- it's an honor to meet you.
- Thank you.

Here he comes.

- Can you put it on daddy?
- Yeah.

I just got an apron. It's like
the craziest feeling in the world.

The ravioli,
it's a very difficult dish to make.

He got the pasta just right.
It's just that lack of really

cultural understanding of less is more,
you know?

But it's "masterchef legends,"
so I need to be blown away

before they get my
vote for an apron.

So, guys,
two aprons out, 13 to go.

We've seen some pretty top-notch
talent. How you guys feeling?

I'm so impressed to see the
level of talent for home cooks

coming right out of the
gate. Really amazing.

- I'm shaking so much.
- It's okay. You're doing good.

- Just relax. Enjoy.
- You're doing good.

Thanks guys. I'm
making a mess over here.

My name is autumn.
I'm 27 years old,

and I'm a bartender from boston,
massachusetts.

I grew up a very typical
boston italian family.

We're always cooking. Always pasta,
always bread.

Get out of there, you.

I'm really excited to be in the
masterchef kitchen and cooking.

Woohoo!

I'm really nervous
about the judges.

I might, like...

Might lose my
if I see gordon ramsay.

Oh, am I allowed to swear?

- Good evening. How are you?
- Hi.

- - how are you?

First name? Autumn,
nice to see you.

What are you cooking?
What are you doing?

- I'm doing a banana miso cake...
- Oh, come on.

...With a cream cheese frosting
and a miso caramel sauce

with some bruléed bananas on it.

- A banana miso cake? - Yeah.

- In 45 minutes? - Yeah.

How did you get it
cooked in 45 minutes?

- I put them on... I do little cakes.
- Okay, good. Small.

- Yeah, yeah.
- Can you become america's next masterchef?

- That's the biggest question here tonight.
- I think that I can.

- Why?
- I'm really determined and I like adding

- my own unique flair to everything.
- The accent's changed now.

- Why? Is it because you're in front of the man here?
- No. No, no, no.

You guys are making me nervous.
This is crazy. I can't even believe this.

Me? It's him. He's the legend,
not me.

Both of you are. This is like
one... I can't even believe this.

I used to watch you on tv,
and, oh, my goodness.

So what are you
looking for in there?

I'm just trying to
get it a little bit lighter

- and get all the clumps out.
- So maybe you need to whip it.

- Whip it.
- Yeah, I'm going to. You guys are intimidating.

- Good luck. - Yeah, thank you.

Doing this cake in 45
minutes is a huge risk.

I need to go in the fridge.

If I don't have it
cooled in enough time,

then the frosting is just
gonna melt and go everywhere.

I'm gonna make sure
everything's on point.

I just don't want to
make any mistakes.

I'm very much a perfectionist.

- Finishing touches. Good.
- Ten seconds left.

Ten, nine, eight,

seven, six, five, four,

three, two, one.

Whoo!

Going into this tasting,

I need to get that white apron.

There's not a lot of them,
so I'm just hoping

that doing something
a little more different

will pay off in the end.

Cheers.

Can you describe
your dish for us?

Yes. So,
this is a miso banana cake

with cream cheese frosting
and a miso caramel sauce

and some bruléed bananas.

- Let's do this, gentlemen.
- All right.

- Miso? - Miso, yes.

That's a very bold move to
put miso in a dessert format.

Yeah. You know, the miso is
really salty and has, like, an umami,

so I put a few tablespoons
of it into the cake,

and then I put a bunch
of it in the caramel.

Joe?

Um, it's like... it's a lot.

As you said, it's a lot. There's
a lot of... a lot going on there.

It's a bit extreme.

But an extreme in the way
I like. Very good dessert.

- Thank you, thank you, thank you.
- Yeah, you know, I think

by coming in with dessert and doing
something a little avant-garde like this

really speaks to who you are,
and I love the flavors.

Thank you so much.

I'm glad you whipped the
cream cheese frosting more.

- Yes. - Um, I like it.

- Thank you.
- For me, the hero is the cake.

What you've done there
is absolutely delicious.

But just be careful,
the additions of the sugar.

- I could have done without glaze in the bananas.
- Okay.

Third mouthful in, it's like, "oh,
my god. There's so much sugar in here."

the smartest move
for me is the miso.

Um, can you cook savory?

- Yes. - You can cook italian?

Yes. I am italian.

- Joe?
- Well, I think you know what my answer is.

I think it's definitely a yes.

And yes from me for an apron.

- Emeril?
- For me it's definitely a yes.

For me it's a yes as well.

- Four strong yeses. - Oh, man.

- Four yeses. - Oh, my goodness.

Congratulations.

- Well done. - Thank you.

Oh, my gosh!

I am feeling
like a million bucks.

I'm feeling on top of the world.

I still can't believe that I
got the masterchef apron.

This is crazy. I love you guys.

- She has good instincts with food.
- Yeah.

I've never had miso
with a banana cake.

No, I've never had it either.
Actually really interesting.

- Very interesting.
- So, guys, that's three aprons out, 12 to go.

- Yes! - Go, miles!

Yeah! - Woman: Whoo!

The biggest thing that these
home cooks are going into

that they don't face in
their kitchen at home, right,

- is cooking against the clock.
- For sure.

You have to be able
to tune all of this out

because if you want
to get to the next level,

this is what it is. This is your
kitchen for the next couple of months.

- You got this. - There you go.

My name is elyce,
I'm 39 years old,

and I love to bake.
It's everything to me.

Being in the masterchef
kitchen is a dream come true.

I never thought in a million years
I'd be here, but I'm here today.

Whoo! This cake represents me,
and I'm excited to show it to them.

When they taste it,
they're gonna love it.

- Got it? All right. - Yeah.

Whoa!

- Welcome. How are we?
- Hello. How are you?

- First name? - Elyce.

- How are you, elyce?
- I'm good.

- Hello. How are you?
- How are you guys?

- What are you making?
- I'm making a mini red velvet cake

- with mascarpone cream cheese.
- Whose recipe is this?

This is my mom's recipe. She
taught me when I was seven years old.

I carried it through.
I've been perfecting it.

I perfected it so
much that I got a ring.

And I am hoping that it
gets me an apron today.

I love that. Watch
that frosting.

Make sure that cake's
not hot when you're piping.

- Exactly.
- Taste, taste, taste.

- And make sure it's cooked. Good luck.
- Got it.

- Thank you. - Here we go, yeah.

I'm never washing
my hand ever again.

I'm never...

Welcome, young man. Tell us your name,
where you're from,

- and what you're cooking.
- Miles. I'm from frisco, texas.

I'm cooking miles-style
chicken fried rice.

Miles-style chicken what?

- Right?
- This man's allowed to name dishes after himself.

You're not.

So tell me about the rice.
You're using just regular rice?

Actually, it's sushi rice,
so this has more body.

The dish sounds good. In that restaurant,
it better be delicious, okay?

- That's the goal, that's the goal.
- Nice. Oh, boy.

- Let's go, miles.
- My hands have never shaked this much.

Five, four, three, two, one.

It's being tasted by some
of the best palates on the planet,

including my idol gordon ramsay.

Thank you, thank you, thank you.

So I hope the
miles-style flies high.

- Hey, man, what's going on?
- What's happening?

I've got a really beautiful, elegant,
flavorful chicken fried rice.

- Chicken fried rice?
- Yes.

Now that's like a global standard,
right?

Everyone knows what
chicken fried rice...

- right, right.
- Are you insane or are you brilliant?

It's a dish that I truly love,

but in my opinion,
it lacks a lot of flavor.

So what I wanted
to do is elevate that.

Okay, so if it's not chicken
fried rice that we all know,

what's the name of your dish?

I like to call it miles-style
chicken fried rice.

- Miles-style? - Wow.

- Should we jump in? Taste it?
- Yeah.

How did you elevate the dish?

I used salt, pepper, soy sauce,

fish sauce, olive oil,
and just a splash of water.

This is not fried rice. I don't
know where to go with it.

I'm really stuck.

Here's the honest truth, miles.

It's weirdly good.

There's something
quite warm about it.

It's sort of elevated
comfort food.

I like what's going on here.
The flavors are really nice.

I don't know about the avocado,
but the flavor's there.

I don't know.

Look,
this is "masterchef legends."

we have emeril here as a guest.

So, for me it's a no,
but let's see.

- Um, so for me, it's a yes. Resounding.
- A yes? Really?

- Yeah. - I'm really torn here.

I'm, like, really, really torn.

I like the flavors in it,
so I'd have to say

overall it would be yes for me.

- Wow. - I agree.

Let me taste it
just one more time.

- You think this is what gets you an apron?
- I do.

- I think you're right. I believe in you.
- Thank you.

- You deserve an apron.
- Congratulations.

- Oh, my god.
- You got three yeses, you got an apron.

- Thank you, guys.
- It doesn't matter what I think, miles.

You got an apron. Just be careful
how you name a dish after yourself

- next time around.
- Yes. Thank you. Thank you.

- Come on, come on.
- Yeah, baby!

No way!

I cannot believe I
just won a masterchef apron.

- It is surreal.
- You're giving out aprons for fried rice? Come on.

- Give me a break.
- It's not fried rice, though. It's a different dish.

- He just named it incorrectly.
- It wasn't that bad.

I mean, the kid,
he's on to something.

I love this. Let's go, mom.

This cake is so important to me

because I'm tired of
being a home cook.

- You got this.
- Five, four, three,

two, one.

My family encouraged me to
release my fears and step out

and see that I deserve to
have an apron around my neck.

I want to make my family proud.

- Well, welcome. - Thank you.

Today I made a
mini red velvet cake

with mascarpone cream cheese,

and I garnished it with
freeze-dried raspberries.

I can't wait to dive in that
thing. Should we go taste?

- Let's do it. - Gentlemen.

It's restaurant quality,
let me tell you.

I'm a bit peeved with the
upside-down raspberry.

- Do you mind if I turn that raspberry the right way up?
- You... absolutely, okay.

- It's bugging me, man, honestly. Please.
- Be my guest. Yes.

I'm dying to get in there now that
the raspberry is the right way up.

- Oh, look at that.
- Look at that.

Elyce...

I don't know if I want
another bite or hug you.

- Oh.
- Really, really well done.

- It was delicious.
- Oh, thank you.

I gotta say, elyce,
it is just money.

- Thank you.
- Aarón, for you, is it a yes or a no?

It's unequivocally a yes.

- Emeril? - I say yes.

Gordon?

This dish reminds me

of a "masterchef"
finale dessert.

- It is 100% a yes. - Thank you.

Well,
the proverbial icing on the cake from me?

It's a fourth yes.

Let's see how good this
looks on you. Congratulations.

- Nice job, young lady.
- Thank you.

- Can you get that smile on that face, please?
- Yes.

Please, ma.

Yeah! You did it! You did it!

I feel amazing. I'm wearing
an apron. I cannot believe it.

- This is a dream come true.
- Yes.

Right, baby?

We've given out five aprons,
guys.

That's a third of our aprons.

There's a lot of really
good cooks out there,

but, you know,
let's really be selective.

- You got this, baby.
- Where did I put my shrimps? Oh, it's here.

My name is suu,
I'm 30 years old,

and I'm from houston, texas.

- Just like home, right?
- Just like home.

With a lot more cheering people.

I am born and raised in burma.

- What about the noodles? How's the noodles?
- Noodles are gold.

I started cooking more like helping
my mom and my grandmother

peeling onions,
peeling potatoes, peeling garlic.

So,
it was more of a chore than a choice.

But then at 22,

I got myself admitted into a
grad school in the united states,

so I started cooking a lot again

just to comfort myself
from homesickness.

And that is when I realized food
in engraved in the very core of me.

- I know you got it, honey. They're gonna love it.
- I'll get it.

- What's going on in there?
- So I'm pounding fresh curry paste.

I grew up in burma,
so we'd make a lot of curries in burma.

What does america need to
know about burmese food?

We have a lot of culinary influences
from india and china, southeast asia,

and I'm putting everything in the
bowl that I'm presenting to you tonight.

- Good luck.
- I can promise you that. Thank you very much.

- Awesome. - That looks amazing.

It's the home
stretch. You got it.

I hope I make my family, my parents,
my grandmother really, really proud of me.

- Three, two, one.
- Yes!

I believe burmese food is
worthy of winning masterchef title,

and I'm here to win it.

- Hello, chefs. - Hello.

My name is suu. I'm
presenting this burmese shrimp

and coconut curry
noodle soup to you.

And where does this
love of food come from?

I come from a
third-world country.

We have to eat so
that we can survive.

So we are really grateful
to have a bowl of rice

every day where I came from.

- Wow. - Shall we taste?

Indeed.

I can tell by your presentation
that you were really considerate

about all the
different elements.

It just says a lot about your
finesse and your technique.

- So you toasted the heads throughout as well?
- Yes, yes.

Yes, chef. I charred them
and I squeezed out the juice,

but all these heads go
back into a shrimp stock pot.

Emeril, how was that for you?

Um, suu,
I have a thing that I say...

- Yes, chef.
- ...Not to too many people, which is food of love.

- And this here, suu...
- Yes, chef?

...Is food of love. Well done.

Thank you. Thank you very much,
chef. I'm very humbled.

- That is truly something special.
- It means a lot to me, chef.

It was, um...

A profound immersion

into burmese cuisine.

Thank you very much, joe.

Suu,
I'm gonna be really honest with you.

It's the best dish
I've tasted all night.

Thank you so much, chef.

Congratulations.

Come over, please, young lady.

- Man. - Congratulations.

Thank you very much. Thank you.

And go away so we can
finish eating the rest of this.

- Yes, chef, yes. Thank you very much.
- Gordon. Please.

Yes!

I'm so proud of you,
honey. You're in "masterchef!"

- mom, dad... - Hi.

I got the white apron. I just earned it,
dad!

I just earned it, mom.

Thank you, dad. Thank you.

Yeah!

You took all the shrimp. You
left half a shrimp for emeril and I.

I didn't taste
the shrimp at all.

Dude, I had one piece of shrimp.

There's two shrimp... Hey,
can you... really?

What's wrong with you?

The audition rounds continue...

Two nos and you're out
of this door with no apron.

...With another culinary legend.

For the very first time,
curtis stone.

- Four judges...
- your execution was perfect.

- It's beautiful.
- You definitely have an apron.

- ...One chance...
- that is one of the worst dishes I've ever tasted.

- For me, I'm sorry. It's a no.
- ...Just to earn one of the few remaining white aprons

- and a prized position...
- I think you've nailed it.

- ...In the final 15.
- With the level that they're cooking at already,

you guys are in for
one hell of a season.